Clutch for automobiles and other purposes.



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CLUTCH POR AUTOMOBILES AND. OTHER PURPOSES.

APPLICATION FILED MAB. 2. 1906.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

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No. OEUOEE.

, Y M. H. OOEMAOK. OLUEOE EOE AUTOMOBILES ANU OTHER PURPOSES.

LPPLIOATIOH FILED mn.2,19oe.

2 SHEETB-BHEET 2.

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I transmit power from the motor to the transhead is moved longitudinally to expand lthe cone is moved against the ringthe thrust or part or parts of the outside mechanism.

- and State of New York, Ahave inventednew;

UNITED STATES PATENT oiunoE'.-

MAURICE H. coRMAoK, or NEW YORK, Y., ASSIGNoR To STANDARD BRAKE COMPANY, OF NEW YORK,

YORK.-

To all whom it may con/cern.- l

Be it known that I, MAURICE H. OoRMAon, a citizen of the United States, residing at New York, borough of Manhattan, in the county and useful Im rovements in Clutches for Automobiles andp other Purposes, of which the followingis a speciiication. 1.

. This invention has reference ,ggeneralleyA to'.V clutches for securing contii'iuity..betweerf'a4 powerdriven shaft, for examplethecrankshaft of an automobile and the clutch-shaft that connects with the transmission-gear, for the 44purpose of transmitting pow'er from the driv'i-ijig mechanism to the driven'mechanism, and," in the special case of automobiles, to

mission-gear and through the said gear to the The present inventionfhas particularreferl ence to friction-clutches of that type wherein an ex ansible ring coacts with adrum con necte with or forming part of the f ly-fwheel or other driving element, and which expanded into frictional contact and-engagement with the drum lby means of a head or cone. ,A clutch of this type'isshown inrny pending `application Ser. No.' 3Q2 .,127\ ii1 `and the trans `mission-gear, whereby when operated to move the head a the ring a, thrust-collar on the clutch-s afi'J takes up the strain or thrust and throughthe clutch-'shaft transmits it to the transmission-gear, thereby causing friction and interfering with the smooth running of the gear. i

The object of this invention Vis to relieve the clutch-shaft and the transmission. gear from the strain which is exerted when the friction-ring."

A further object of the invention is to arrange these devices so that when the head or strain of expanding the friction-l 'ring and holding it in engagement with the drum shall" be contained wlthin the casing of the clutch and resisted or sustained by members of the clutch instead of being transmitted to some Specification of Letters Patent. Application led March 2,1906. Serial No. 303.742.

N'Y., A ooRPoRATIoN or NEW -,o| U'roH FoR AUTOMOBILES AlND OTHER PURPOSES.

Patented June 18, 1907.

The invention also has for its objectto pro duce a head or cone for ex anding the tion-ring in-which strengt and durability. areisecured by making the rim and web separate from the hub and providing the .hub iwith a flange by means of which it 1s fastened to the web ofthe head and thus strengthens 6o the-web at the point where the greatest strain is imposedupon it;

The invention being peculiarly applicable to the clutches of automobiles 1 (but not yexclusively so) it is illustrated in connection with the fly-wheel and clutch-shaft of these vehicle's,`and in the drawings which accoma verticalglon itudinal ysection of the clutchmechanism, t e sectionbeing taken on Aa 7o plane throu 4the axis of the clutch-shaft andil'y-whe. Fig. 1a is a detail of the-device forjmoying the head or cone back, to release'thfriction ring. Fig. "-2 ,is a vvertical Atransverse section of the clutch-mechanism, 75

the Sectionrbeing taken on a plane indicated by the brokn'lnies 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3' represents the expansion-ring -side elevation. Fig. 4 is L ,vertical transverse section offthe clutch-ndiechanism,4 the sectionbeing 8o taken-on. theA same .plane as Fig. 2but showing a modiheation of theexpansion friction ringand the head or cone forwexpanding the same. qu

Referring'to the drawings A des' ates the 85 section'of a fly-wheel of an automdile which is usually mounted on the crank-shaft-vtnot shown).` This fly-wheel may constitute the driving element of the clutch. The hub of the {1ywheel on its, inner end is 9o bored out to receive the phosphor-bronze bushing which forms the -bearing for the journal dof the clutch-shaft B. Oh the exterior periphery of the hub a ball-v bearing thrust-collar -eis mounted and agamst this a spiral-spring -f bears by 4which the head or cone is movedlinto and against the ring to expand it and hold itnormally in frictional contact with the drum or casing D. This drum is a hollow cylinder 10o having its edges provided with a flan e -g#- which is erforated to receive the en s of the studs which are inserted in the iiywheel, either by screwing them into tapped y. holes in the same or by constructing them ro 5 passing them through holes in msnen the iiy-wheel. Atened to the inner face of the ily-wheel by im ofthe drum is fasmeans of nuts -J1`,- screwed on the ends of the studs which project through the rim. The ily-wheel forms one side of the drum and closes the same on this side, the opposite side being closed by the wall jjwhich is preferably cast as an integral part of the drum. The wall -jhas a central circular perforation -7cto permit the hub of the head or cone to be inserted in the drum.

E is the expansible member of the clutch in this instance consisting of a divided expansible ring which is inserted in the drum with its edges between the part of the iiywheel that projects inside of the .rim of the drum, and the wall i# of the drum. This ring is divided or split transversely at Jinan as shown in Figs. 1 and 2 is of varying thickness, being thinnest at its edges adjacent to the opening -fmand thickest at the diametrically opposite line as at -n-- The increased thickness of the ring is confined to the interior periphery, theexterior periphery being concentric with the periphery of the drum, whereby the internal periphery is rendered eccentric to the axis of the drum. The interior periphery of the ring is also tapered transversely, from its edge which bears against the wall to the edge which bears against the fly-wheel.

-F is the head or cone by which the ring is supported and expanded. The periphery of this head is also tapered to the same angle as the interior periphery of the ring but in the opposite direction. The head or cone has also on its periphery between the ends of the ring a wedge-shaped stop -owhich is fastened to or cast on the head. The edges of the ring are parallel to the edges of the wedge-shaped stop and they abut against the same. This wedge-stop prevents the ring from turning and maintains the proper relation between it and the head. The rim of the head is eccentric to the axis of the drum to the same degree as the inner periphery of the expansible ring, its eccentricity being opposite to that of the ring so that the major eccentricity or thickness of the ring corresponds with the minor eccentricity of the head. The head is provided with a hub G which is mounted on the clutch-shaft B. The clutch-shaft is prismatic in cross-section and the opening in the hub is correspondingly shaped so that when the head rotates it carries the clutch-shaft with it.

The spiral-spring f is wound around the hub between the web of the head and the thrust-bearing collar e-e-f. The expansive force of this spring is -thus exerted against the web of the head and the latter is thereby moved away from the fly-wheel and its tapered rim is forced against the tapered inner periphery of the friction-ring and expands the latter into frictional engagement we and Ely-wheel being connected together it will be seen that the force exerted by the spring is contained within the clutch-mechanism. That is to say the backward thrust of the sprinr is sustained 'by the ily-wheel while the iorward thrust is exerted against the movable head. The clutch is thus of that' type known as the self-dontained clutch. The longitudinal movement of the vhead or cone with respect to the friction-ring,"acting against the oppositely tapered or inclined periphery of the ring may be sufficient to expand the ring into frictional engagement with the drum, but to control the expansion and make it uniform so that the periphery of the ring throughout its entire length will bear with uniform ressure against the internal periphery o ,the drum, the action of the head or cone may be supplemented by the tangential application of force to the ends of the ring on each side of the opening -m-. This is effected by means of the wedge-shaped stop -o-. The action of this device when the inclined periphery of the head or cone is moved longitudinally against the inclined periphery of the ring is to expand the ring circumferentially against the drum wliile the head or cone applies its expansive force radially, the two forces combining to eect the expansion and coacting to maintain the circular form of the ring, prevent it from expanding unevenly and causing a perfect frictional contact with the drum.

In order that the wedge-stop and the head or cone may coact simultaneously the ancfles of the edges of the wedge lare refera ly equal to the sum of the angles which the tapered peripheries of the rim of the ring and the expansible ring bear to the periphery of the drum so that, when the head is moved longitudinally a ainst the ring and expands it from the inside7 the edges of the wedgestop bear at the same time against the ends of the rin and expand it circumferentially. Normaly the spring causes the head to press against the ring constantly and thus maintain rictional contact with the drum, so that continuity is maintained between the driving part of the mechanism and the part to be driven viz.,kthe clutch-shaft and however, be broken at `'any moment by means of the forked-lever -p-. This lever is mounted on a shaft gwhich is connected by suitable mechanism with the clutchtreadle. The ends of the lever bear against the ball-bearing thrust-collar ron the reduced outer end of the hub G. When the treadle is operated the ends of the forked lever are drawn against the thrust-collar and move the hub longitudinally on the clutchshat against the resistance of the spring --f-, and the rim of the head being thereby moved back, the ring is allowed to contract. By

the transmission-gearLThis continuity can IOC IIO

this means the frictional contact and enat its bottom.

gagement of the ring with the drum is gradually reduced and finally completely broken, but, as soon as the clutch-treadle is released, the spring forces the head` against the ring, expands it into frictional contact with the drum and re-establishes the continuity between the fly-wheel and the clutch-shaft.

It will be observed that the thrust of the spiral-spring in one direction is borne by theA ffy-wheel against which one end presses while in the opposite direction the thrust is ultimately borne by the drum owing to the conical head bearing against the expansible member and the latter bearing against the inner periphery of the drum which limits the expansion of the expansible member and, finally, the longitudinal movement of the head. The clutcheshaft and the transmission-gehar are thus wholly relieved of the strain and the pressure of the spring.

The rim *sand web *tof the head or cone are integral parts of one another, but the hub G is separate. The latter has a circular flange --uwhich is parallel to the web. The flange and web are riveted together so that a rigid connection is made between them as shown by Figs. l and 2. By making the web and rim of the head separate from the hub and connecting them together by placing the web against the circumferential flange -a on the hub and riveting the web and flange together, the flange reinforces the web where the spring bears against it and strengthens it at the point where the strain is greatest. Furthermore, if the head should be injured or broken it can be readily removed and replaced by a fresh one, the hubwhich is not liable to injury being retained and thus the expense of repair will be materially reduced. The web -tis perforated centrally to admit the inner end of the hub and is provided with a circular flange JU- that projects at right-angles from the web and is connected with the rim --s by radial ribs -fwthat strengthen the head. The circular flange -oon the web and the hub which it surrounds, form a socket fx, the inside peripheries of the flange and the hub being tapered so that the socket is slightly wider at its entrance than The spiral spring *f* is coiled in the socket The oil for lubricating the clutch-mechanism is placed in the drum, and to prevent leakage, a packing consisting of a fibrous ring I'I of felt or other suitable material is placed on the outside of the wall -y'- around the clutch-shaft under a steel ring I and fastened by means of machine screws.

The modification shown by Fig. 4 consists in making the expansible ring E of uniform thickness throughout its entire length, or, in other words, making both the inner and outer peripheries concentric with the axis of the drum; and the head likewise is made concentric with the axis of the drum. The advantage of making the head and ring eccentric to the axis of the drum is that in expanding the ring will be brought to a true circle but, as the expansion is produced by the combined or coacting o eration of the head and the wedge-stop, t e eccentricity may without [material disadvantage be dispensed with if dsirable. A

Various modifications may be made of the several parts of the clutch herein described, and it is evident that some of these parts may be used inconnection with ordinary frictionclutches, for example the construction herein shown and described of the head with separate hub and a flange to reinforce the web of the head. Furthermore, the invention is not confined to the use of a sprin for moving the head longitudinally to exp an the friction ring as other devices may be substituted if desirable.

I claim:-

1. In a clutch, the combination, with a driving member and a drum fixed thereto, of a driven shaft journaled in said driving member, an actuating head movable longitudinally along said driven shaft but rotatable therewith, an expansible member compressible against said drum by said actuating head, means interposed between said driving member and said actuating head for normally maintaining said head in clutching engagement, and means mounted independently of said driven shaft for shifting said head in opposition tothe action of said means.

2. In a clutch, the combination, with a driving member and a drum fixed thereto, of a dri en shaft journaled in said driving member, an actuating head movable longitudinally along said driven shaft but rotatable therewith, lan expansible member compressible against said drum by said actuating head, means interposed between said driving vmember and said actuating head for normally maintaining said head in clutching engagement, and a rock-shaft mounted independently of said driven shaft and carrying a forked lever to engage said head and shift the same in opposition to said first-named means.

3. In a clutch, the combination, with a flywheel having a bored hub, of a driven shaft journaled in said hub and freely rotatable therein, an actuating head movable axially along said driven shaft but rotatable therewith, a drum fixed to said fly-wheel and inclcsing said head, an expansible member which is forced into engagement With said drum by said head, means acting on said head to normally maintain said parts in such engagement, and means mounted'independently of said driven shaft and abutting against the hub of said head whereby said head is moved out of clutching engagement.

Ioo

IIO

4. In a clutch, in combination, a driving member, a driven shaft journaled in said driving member, a hub slidable axially along said driven shaft but keyed thereto in order to rotate therewith, said hub having intermediately ofits length an outwardly-extending flange, a web secured to said flange and having a tapered rim-portion integral therewith and an integral flange extending laterally toward said driving member, a helical spring interposed between said web and said driving member and disposed in the socket formed between the ilange of said web and said hub, a drum fixed to said driving mem- -ber and inclosing said web and its taperedrim, an expansible member interposed between said tapered rim and the inner peripheral surface of said drum, and means to shift said hub and the parts secured thereto, in opzo position to said spring.

5. In a clutch, in combination, a ily-Wheel having a bored hub, a driven shaft freely rof tatable in said hub, a head rotatable with said driven shaft but movable axially therealong, a drum fixed to said fly-wheel and in- 2 5 closing said head with the exception of one end-portion of its hub, an ex ansible memberinterposed between' said ead and said drum, means acting upon said head for normally maintaining said member in engage- 3o ment With said drum; and means acting upon the .end-portion of the hub of said head which extends without said drum to shift said head out of clutching engagement.

In testimony that I claim the invention 3 5 above set forth, I have affixed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

MAURICE I-I. CORMACK.

Witnesses :v

HANS AMSHEIN, WILTON C. DoNN. 

